xiaohua

2nd Korean war July 31, 2017

Source: BBC News

Is it a S. Korean problem?

No doubt about it. 

Instead of raining cats and dogs, DMZ, Seoul and a big chunk of S. Korea will see bombs of all sorts raining down from the sky before the U.S. can surgically nuetralize threats from N. Korea missile sites. There might be nuclear, bio and chemical varieties.

S. Koreans won’t like Trump’s call for actions either because millions of S. Koreans have relatives in the north. They don’t want to see them die from American bombs. 
Will S. Korea invade the North without U. S. participation? 

No.

Will S. Korean soldiers kill N. Korean soldiers and vice versa?

No, if they have a say. They are all Koreans after all.

So, let me get this straight:

After Trump tweets out the order to bomb the hell out of N. Korea, it is the Koreans who will suffer the most and it is the Koreas which will endure the most damages. 

It isn’t a good picture and it doesn’t make any sense for Mr. Moon at all.

Is it a problem for Japan?

Definitely. Japan had twice occupied Korea in the past, slaughtered many Koreans and ruled Korean people for centuries. For that, Koreans hate Japan and that’s why N. Korea wants nothing less than total revenge against Japan if a war breaks out between the U.S. and N. Korea. 

Then there is the issue of Japan denying the roles of comfort women during WWII. 

Once war breaks out, N. Korea will try to do all it can to inflict damages to Japan and its people one way or the other. 

Is it a problen for Russia?

Nope. There might be nuclear fall outs in Russia if nukes start to fly. Russia will contunue to supply all the weapons N. Korea wants and provide intelligence data which N. Korea needs to fight the war.

Putin should benefit the most from the war between the U.S.A. and N. Korea.

Is it a problem for China?

To some degree. China may see thousands of N. Korean migrants crossing over the Yalu River if Trump decides to bomb N. Korea. Nuclear fall outs in China can’t be dismissed either. 

But, N. Korea will not invade China and it will not send missiles to the direction of China either. It is annoying to China because of all the tweets from Trump but the war isn’t a problem for China per se.

In the end, China will stand behind N. Korea in spirit but will not fight for the country like it did in the first Korean war. If N. Korea requests weapons, China will provide them so that Kim’s regime can defend itself.

After the war, China will offer N. Korea interest free loans and help N. Korea re-build. China’s excess capacity gets new orders and N. Korea gets new factories, new roads and new railroads. It’s a win win situation.

Is it a problem for the U.S.?

Yes. 50+K American soldiers in DMZ and Camp Humphreys will be in harms way. Nukes, bio and chemical bombs could come down on them. Andrews AFB will become a busy place. Body bag makers will see a rush of new orders. Bomb makers will work overtime to re-stock the pile. U.S. economy gets a small boost. 

American ship and carriers in the vicinity of Korea and Japan and other regions in the Pacific Ocean may face threats from N. Korean subs even though these subs are old and out dated. 

American soil will be spared just like all world wars in the past. But, N. Korean spies will try to cause damages to American assets in the world. 

Can America do a surgical attack on N. Korean targets just to give Kim a warning?

No. 

The U.S. won’t. It has to do a “shock and awe” job in the beginning to eliminate major threats from the N. Korea. 

To do that, America has to amass a large number of fighter planes before bombing starts. If America wants to invade N. Korea either with S. Korean troops (preferred by America, of course,) or American soldiers, they need to move soldiers to the DMZ. That will give N. Korea ample chance to strike the first blow to American soldiers and South Korean urban centers. It can get pretty ugly very fast.
Is it a problem for North Korea?

Certainly. Millions of N. Korean soldiers and civilians will die if the 2nd Korean War drags on. Infrastructure in N. Korea will for sure be damaged.

Will Kim die? Probably not. He’ll be hidding in the bunker which can stand direct hits from Mother of all bombs. 

Will Kim be captured? Not likely unless America sends in foot soldiers into Pyongyang to mop up the floor clean after devastating N. Korea.

Whose war is it anyway?

So, is Kim more of a problem for S. Korean people or is it a problem for Trump and America?

The answer is clearly the latter. Koreans don’t want a war. Moon want a dialog with Kim and it is Trump and American generals who are more eager to start a war between two Koreas. 

So, why is Trump so eager to stir up the pot? Because Trump is in trouble at home with low voters approval ratings and Mueller. The real reason for Trump’s N. Korea tweets is that by kicking the N. Korea conflict up a notch it might divert media’s attention away from Russian investigation. 

A bigger question

Shouldn’t S. Koreans have more to say about a war between the two Koreas instead of Trump?

Moon should make it very clear to Trump on this important point unless Trump is sending American soldiers into the North too.

A Black Swam from the Korean peninsula?

So, is the 2nd Korean war a “black swan” event for the world financial markets to worry about?

Not by the action of three major indices. All three are either at or near all time highs. 

The only logical conclusion one can make is that despite all the tweets from Trump, the 2nd Korean war won’t happen.